


Bloody Madness

by SomberWinter



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Imp Midna - Freeform, Mute Link (Legend of Zelda), Romance, Short One Shot, Tragedy, cursed midna
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2020-12-01
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:00:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27807220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SomberWinter/pseuds/SomberWinter
Summary: He was the reason they'd made it this far. It was by his strength, his beautiful heart, and unrelenting courage that they'd come so close to ending it all. And now, as the weight of Zant's presence and words came down upon her, she finally found the word she'd needed to describe the ever evolving feelings for him. Through all her adoration and appreciation for him, there had always been much more than that. Like the mountains that obscured the sunset, there was more than just simply "caring" for him.She loved him.--------What if Link was not able to defend Midna from Zant's cursed stone?
Relationships: Link/Midna (Legend of Zelda)
Kudos: 10





	Bloody Madness

**Author's Note:**

> An oldie I made with an old friend of mine back in 2012 (original can be found on FF.net) that I decided to revise. It was painfully harder then I originally thought. 
> 
> I feel that I Found by Amber Run relates to Midna as she originally only used Link for personal gain until she formed a bond with him. In this one-shot that bond is known/realized and is more than just "friends."

_And I'll use you as a focal point, so I don't lose sight of what I want. -_ _I Found by Amber Run_

* * *

Malice poured from her lips in the form of a hiss as she ripped free from the twisted man's grip. No matter what sweet words came from his putrid mouth, no matter the promises and apologies, she would have nothing to do with him. Not after what he'd done to her, to their people, and to both their world and this world. The mere thought brought forth white hot anger. It curled around her, drawing forth the realization that the only good thing that had come out of his vile actions was the hero she'd found.

That, in itself, was a strange and liberating realization as she looked for him--her hero. The only one that she cared for--perhaps the only person she'd ever cared for more than her life and the throne. If it wasn't for him, she would have drowned in self-pity. Wallowed in it until she'd suffocate and die. If it wasn't for him, she wouldn't have been able to see the beauty that his world had to offer. Wouldn't have been able to see the good that often rested within the people of light, their acceptance and love having been a fairytale until she'd met him.

In fact, he was the reason they'd made it this far. It was by his strength, his beautiful heart, and unrelenting courage that they'd come _so close_ to ending it all. And now, as the weight of Zant's presence and words came down upon her, she finally found the word she'd needed to describe the ever evolving feelings for him. Through all her adoration and appreciation for him, there had always been much more than that. Like the mountains that obscured the sunset, there was more than just simply "caring" for him.

She _loved_ him.

Of course, she hadn't planned it, to fall in love with a mortal let alone the fabled Hero of Time. Yet her she was, putting him before her. Her she was worrying over him, a lesser being, over the tantalizing promises from one of her own.

She fell to the ground, the dirt dry and cold underneath the gaze of the cursed Twilight overhead, and scrambled to where he lie. Zant, the man that had ruined _everything_ , had tossed him to the side like trash. That alone wasn't why she crawled along the dust, urgency making her stumble. No, it was the cold worry that slithered over her as she looked over the form he'd been forced to take. His human form had been ripped from him, shoved to the side as his beast form took over. The beast of a monstrous wolf that he could only take underneath the gaze of Twilight. His body was covered in crimson from the thick skies overhead, streams of twilight caking his fur in inky black. She reached his side, hands like fledglings over his body in search of any grievous wounds. 

If he was hurt, _one scratch_ , then Zant would wish that he had never stepped foot outside the Twilight realm, _ever_. 

The laugh that consumed the small space of Lanayru's shrine made her small, sharp fingers curl, the sharp nails biting into her skin. "So predictable." His voice whispered, chasing his laugh and rousing the twilit shadows as she partially turned to glare at him. 

He shook his head, the serpentine mask doing little to hide that sickening curl of his lips. "Fawning over a weakling, over a creature of light." He scoffed. My, how far she'd fallen. It was beyond pathetic. To think that he, the Lord of Twilight, had once desired her to be by his side. A preposterous idea now, but as he watched her waste such useless emotions over the beast of light, he couldn't help but burn with jealousy. She'd denied him, _him_ of all people, and looked to a worthless dog of the gods for love and assistance? And the way she acted, how ungrateful she was for him sparing her? How ungrateful she was after he'd just promised her both the realms, if only to join him at his side? Refusing him for a dirty mongrel that wouldn't last a day in true twilight.

She seemed to think that she was still in control. As if she had the _right_ to deny him. _No one_ had that right. No. One.

His grin turned feral then, sharp teeth protruding from his pale gums as the jealousy turned icy and bitter. He lifted his hands, his gaping sleeves sweeping across the dry ground, and parted them in greeting to a single, black orb. It throbbed in his grasp, tendrils and ribbons of blood swarming the black like the tongue of a snake. From it came the crackle of dark, foreboding magic and the stench of morbid death, sour and rusted. 

She did not see it as it hurtled across the space between them, its energy reaching for her in a frenzy. Hungering for the darkness that formed along her bones and coursed through her blood. No, she'd only turned her head, witnessed her end, as soon as the beast's eyes opened before her. Two vast seas clad with the color of endless skies, a sight that always chilled her with fascination and love, had flickered and then widened. A look of fear and recognition swarming in those depths. They drew her to turn just as her beast tried to stand.

Her eyes met the spiraling darkness, and then her beast launched forward, flew over her shoulder to fight off the vile object. Yet she was faster. Fear and love driving her forward as she stood and tossed him to the side with a brush of magic from her hands.

His back crashed against the wall of the shrine, its façade cracking underneath his weight. His impact summoned a blanket of rocks and dust to consume him, trapping him as she stood to face the attack. 

**_No!_** The beast barked, claws biting into the ground.

She kept her back to him, body rigid as she let the ghost of a smile slip across her face. The orb's angry red bathed her, tainted the blacks and whites that made up her skin, and as it consumed her, the beast let loose a howl of disdain. A curse that echoed madly against the once holy shrine, a curse that shamed him for his weakness, his being, and his form in that moment as he watched the orb expand and devour her whole. 

He stayed motionless for the breath of a moment, the rubble atop of him pressing at his chest as his bloodied claws continued to cut grooves along the dirt. Helpless. All he could do was watch. Watched as the dark magic twirled about her, forcing entry into her minute chest. Forcing a wretched scream of shattering glass to pour from her throat as it threw her to the ground. The scream wreaked havoc within the shrine, centuries of dust falling like ash and snow from the walls. Its noise circled, lasting even as her voice fell silent. It held him captive, trapped him more than the rocks covering him as his eyes refused to look away from her. 

Her body shivering as her back arched and convulsed off the ground. Her limbs stuck to unnatural positions as her thoughts were violently torn from her. Every memory that she'd etched into every fiber of her being burning away as the magic rolled through her. Carved its insanity in the wake of each laughter, each smile, each word that had pulled her from the depths of her own misery. The orb's bloodied hue drowned her all the while, filling her nostrils with death and earth and clouding her vision with that of corrosion: darkness. It racked her body with searing pain, but kept breath away from her, preventing the scream that boiled within.

It's only gift to her was leaving her numb, cold… lost. With one last chorus of scorching agony did she finally, finally settle. Lifelessness coloring her.

"Did you really think that I would let you leave, _Princess_?" Zant cackled, dancing about as he grinned at the sight of the woman who dared to challenge and ignore him. She only responded with a crack of bones, her form stretching to that of the impossible.

The beast could only watch in horror, unable to move from his spot on the ground. Forced to bear witness to the way her skin peeled back, the way the blue glow along her inked arms dimmed.

And then, as the glow on her marks became silent, her body convulsed. Red energy crackled over her limbs. She was becoming a beast of darkness, fiery tentacles pulling from her flesh and swirling about a black-white mask that stretched over her small face. Her hands then stretched to impossible lengths, claws gouging huge holes into the ground as her limbs fought against the energy. They pulsed with the same glow as on the mask, a vicious, angry red. Then her voice warped, a hollowness silencing the scream that had started to push itself from her mutating body. A hollowness that ascended into static and death. It resonated with war and hunger, eternal and damned, and it clawed its way along the walls until it burned the beast's ears.

The monstrosity that resettled no longer looked like her, the Princess of Twilight. No, in her place was a corrupted monstrosity of Twilight, skin shifting in inky shadows and glassy crimson. Slowly she--no, it--stood. The tentacles that had formed from her own flesh swayed, the unnatural arms clawing at the ground as she neared Zant.

"Beautiful. Simply beautiful." He reached for her, his hand brushing along the edge of her mask while the beast of light watched in shock. "Now my _Princess_ ," Zant's grin widened even more as he gestured a massive sleeve to the beast, the wolf's eyes still on the mutilated princess, "kill the dog."

Without delay the monstrosity that once was his friend, limped over to him in a mass of growls. As it met him at the ground did he cringe, its scent reeking of decay. He looked up, holding a bit of hope that perhaps she was still herself despite the abominable curse that had settled over her. He desired to speak, to plead and beg to answer if she was fine. If she was still there, but as she stumbled forward, dragged along the dirt, he realized that she was gone.

She was gone and they had failed.

Sick solemnity washed over him as her grotesque form crowded his vision. She was gone, and he could do nothing to save her let alone himself. After all they had been through, all they had done, _this was it_. It urged the silent emotions he'd buried deep within him out into the open. He'd held back before, a decision he now realized would become his eternal regret. Even if this would be their last moment, he needed to say it. Needed to let his heart out, even if it fell on deaf ears.

She struck, her abnormal hand smashing against his skull as her claws sliced into his fur. The blow ripped the sight from his eyes, blood flooding his vision. It beckoned tendrils of thick blood down his throat. The blood burned, carved into his flesh, and he coughed.

Another blow, this time to the neck. Blood gushed, the burn intensified, and his body heaved underneath the pressure. A chorus of violent, sharp cracks resounded and he retched again.

"M-Mnnn." He tried, his canine voice dying in restlessness, unable to form even a simple word with a wolf's tongue. Yet he tried, desperation urging him to at least say goodbye. To tell her he knew this wasn't her, that he was sorry he couldn't save her. That he-

Another blow, the last. This one landed again at his face, lashed out at his neck a second and final time. It brought his ruby vision to darkness, burning up what little air he had left, and releasing a waterfall of blood from his mouth.

The last blow brought his sapphire eyes to the dullest of grays, the once bright eyes rolling backward into his skull. With a final whimper that died with his life did his head fall to the ground.

"Brilliant. Simply brilliant! Wonderfully done, my _Princess_." Zant smiled yet again, beckoning for the beast to stray away from the bloodied carcass. "Now let us strike down the rest of Hyrule who dares to stand in our way! But first… let us return to _my_ palace."

The corrupted princess of Twilight and the vile king turned, their backs to the weakened snake spirit and the lifeless hero. Leaving the two to rot in silence. Though the soul of the hero remained, left to haunt the empty shrine out of regret. If only he'd told her how he felt, how she'd saved him the moment they'd meant. Would it have made any difference though? No, but the pain of silence he'd left was worse than death. He'd had so much he'd wanted to do, to say, and now she was gone. Whether it be from fate or his pitiful, shameful curse in Twilight, she was gone.

From there and forever the wolf beast's words fell in silence. They fell in blood, a bloody madness that had been set afire by his friend. Words, that's all they were but they meant so much. They meant the world, life, and end.

_I should have said this sooner . . . love you, Midna._


End file.
